Sensory Play

                                                           

Sensory Activities are My favorite thing to do with Layla.  She loves touching, smelling, exploring all of the different things I give her. I have been doing Sensory Activities since she was little and i don;t plan on stopping any time soon.

I have Also been finding SO many more amazing activities on pinterest.com that I wouldn't have thought of on my own.  I can't believe all the creative Mothers out there!

I just wanted to share some of the fun activities that we HAVE done and also promote some of these other Bloggers pages-Because they are THAT amazing!



   WHIPPED CREAM FUN

Layla Playing with Whipped cream at 12 months old.  

She loved smacking it and rubbing it on herself.  Dude(the Dog was more than happy to lap all the splatters up!), Surprisingly she didn't try to eat it even though i tried to encourage her to use as many senses as possible with this activity.


                                                                                                         
 BAKING FUN

Baking is always a fun Sensory Activity.
I am not much of a baker myself but whenever I do attempt it, I always make sure that Layla is awake and gets to be involved.  She loves pouring all the ingredients in and mixing with her many wooden spoons.  And of course licking the spoon at the end!




 PAINTING FUN

Painting is one of Layla favorite things as well.

Finger Painting is more up her ally than anything else.  She LOVES getting messy and feeling the paint between her fingers.  The messy part is what we, as parents, have to get used to.  Its the best way for children to learn!!!


PLAY DOUGH FUN

Home Made Play dough or store bought, either one is a fun sensory activity for your little one.  Layla, like any one year old, tried to taste is many times.  It is okay for them to do this, even most store bought play doughs are non-toxic.  If you don't want them putting it in their mouth just let them know by saying "no mouth" or "yucky" when they try.

Here is a link if you would like to MAKE your own Play dough: 

http://www.thedailybuzz.com.au/2011/11/make-your-own_homemade_crayons_play-doh_chalk_fingerpaint/

             
 
   PAINTING WITH JELLO    
                                                          

 Growing a Jeweled Rose is one of my favorite Blogs!  She has so many amazing activities including a Massive list of Sensory activities to explore.

http://www.growingajeweledrose.com/2012/10/pantry-items-40-ways-to-play.html





 SHAVING CREAM AND FOOD COLORING FUN

 Layla Played for about 45 minutes in the bath tub with Shaving Cream and food coloring.  It didn't stain and it was easy to wash off as soon as we were done.  As a Mom, I LOVE bath tub activities because the clean-      up is SO easy!!!!




  RICE PLAY

I gave Layla some rice in a bowl, measuring cups, and old "tummy Tickler" bottles and she was content for about 30 minutes pouring and sorting the rice.  The texture was different and I made sure she had a full belly before starting this project.  

                                                   

PAINTING WITH CELERY

This was a lot of fun and Layla thought it was so cool that she was painting with food.  As always with the painting activities i stripped her down and did it on the tile floor.  You will see where i got the idea in this woman's blog post.  Layla creations did not look like a rose presented in this bloggers post but she had fun just the same and that's all that matters.


http://homemadeserenity.blogspot.com/2011/02/why-dont-you-make-celery-stamped.html




Well those are some of the Activities that Layla and I have tried so far but we are not even close to done!  Check out these bloggers ideas and have some awesome Sensory Fun with your children!

Homemade Playdough

All kinds of recipes for Homemade Play dough!!!  I thought they all sounded fun and easy to do and i wanted to share it with you!!!! :-)  Have fun with these!

PEANUT BUTTER PLAY DOUGH
Ingredients:
One 18-oz jar creamy peanut butter
6 tablespoons honey
3/4 cup non-fat dry milk

Directions: Mix ingredients together, using varying amounts of dry milk for desired consistencies. Knead it with fingers, forming into desired shapes, adding other foods like M&M's or peanuts for eyes, mouths, etc. Great fun! 



Rubbery Playdough 
2 cups baking soda
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup cornstarch

Mix with a fork until smooth. Boil over medium heat until thick. Spoon onto plate or wax paper



Kool-Aid Playdough 
2 1/2 to 3 cups flour
2 cups boiling water with 1 package Kool-aid (any flavor)
3 tablespoons corn oil
1/2 cup salt
1 tablespoon alum


Mix ingredients and knead with flour (may take up to 1 extra cup). Use more if the dough draws moisture in high humidity. Keeps well, has a nice fragrance and is very colorful and very flexible. 



Oatmeal Playdough
1 cup flour
2 cups oatmeal
1 cup water


Gradually add water to flour and oatmeal in bowl. Knead until mixed (this playdough is sticky, but unique in texture.) Model as with clay. 

Tip: Add cornmeal or coffee grounds in small quantity for texture. 



Just Like the Real Playdough (so they say)
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon powdered alum
1/2 cup salt
2 tablespoons vanilla
food coloring


Mix all dry ingredients. Add oil and water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until reaching the consistency of mashed potatoes. Remove from heat and add vanilla and food coloring. Divide into balls and work in color by kneading the playdough.

"Lesson Plan" for Toddlers

I'm Baaaaaaaack!!  I am sorry I have been MIA for so long, we've been moving and then It was Layla's first birthday party and then I was just lazy for a couple weeks.

For those who don't know Jame's and I are having another Baby!!! Were officially in our second trimester and Very excited!!!

I am about to start going back to school so I making up a Schedule/Lesson plan for me to Follow with Layla during the day.  I am doing it a month in advance so it's all ready to go when i need it and I thought I would share it with all of you as well:-)

I am doing a monthly Theme of Colors and Shapes since these are the main things I am personally trying to teach my little one right now(as well as sign language,being gentle, manners....:-)

Yellow Month (shape-Circle)

Week One:
      Day1-Snack on Pineapples and talk about the color
      Day2-Make a collage with All Yellow Items
      Day3-Go outside and talk about the Sun and it's pretty color 
      Day4-Make a Sun art project(finger paint a white paper plate, cut out strips of yellow paper put a little glue on the end and let them stick them on the paper plate)Talk about the SHAPE of the plate as well as the color they are painting with.
      Day5-Wear ALL Yellow today and talk about it when picking out the outfit

Week Two:
      Day1-Make Lemon aid, Let them help by squeezing the lemons and of course talking about the color YELLOW.
      Day2-Play with YELLOW rubber ducks today in the bath tub
      Day3-Have Banana for a snack today(or any day for that matter), just remember to talk about what color it is.
      Day4-Make a Collage of Yellow Circles
      Day5-Have Mommy(or Daddy cut out a star shape) and color it with Crayons

Week Three:
      Day1-Have YELLOW eggs for breakfast(make it in the shape of a Circle, special for your little one)
      Day2-Cut YELLOW bell peppers in half and use them as stamps with Yellow paint Or just Free Paint with Yellow Finger paints,
      Day3-Go on a Nature walk and pick out all the YELLOW items you see outside.
      Day4-Make a Collage out of all your Yellow Nature Walk Items. (Can you tell I like Collages:-)
      Day5-Use Yellow Chalk to paint on the sidewalk(Make lots of Circles)

Week Four:
      Day1-Eat Corn today...YUMMY
      Day2-Tie Yellow streamers to Toddlers wrist(or let me hold it) and sing this song...
                     Sung to the Tune of "Farmer in the Dell"
      Fly your Yellow Up                         (put hands UP)
      Fly your Yellow Down                    (Put hands DOWN)
      Fly your Yellow All Around            (twirl around)
      Then Fly it Up and Down                (move hands Up and Down)
      
      Day3-Peaches for snack
      Day4-Talk about ALL the different kinds of Yellow Animals, find them in your books or toy box.
      Day5-Caterpillar Art- Finger prints with Yellow, instead of the red and green you see here. Add feet and antenna and you have a cute little caterpillar

     

      
Hope you enjoy Yellow Month with your Child.  Let me know how it goes and post any comments or other suggestions you might have for this theme!!

Your Child's Cues

Layla is now 11 months old, and she has started to hit.

Oh No!  I was not expecting my sweet little cuddly baby to have aggression like this.  She hits me, Daddy and the dog, she even hit Memere when she was here this past weekend.  I was flabbergasted and dumbfounded...I didn't think I was going to have to use the time-out method or discipline with her so early in her little life, and the truth is I don't!

Layla is not hitting because she's mad or showing aggression...I mean how can she have aggressive feelings before her first birthday!?!  I am "listening" to her CUES now, instead of being in shock that she was actually exhibiting this behavior and have realized that she's just TIRED!

Layla was trying to communicate with me.  She is 11 months old and not talking much yet so she did not know how to tell me she was ready for a nap.  Hitting was her way of getting my attention and letting me know what she wanted.  I took her to bed as soon as she started exhibiting this behavior today and she instantly layed down and went to sleep.

DUH!  How did I not get this sooner?

Now that I know why she is "showing out" and "making bad choices" I can help her to change that behavior into something positive.

I can teach her a way to communicate with me more effectively than using her hands!  As soon as I lay her down today i decided I would learn the sign for "nap" or "tired".  When she starts to show me she is tired in her usual negative way,hitting, I will show her the sign for "tired" and put her down for a nap.  This is showing her I understand what she needs but there is another way of expressing this me.

I will keep you updated on how Layla responds to this new method.  Also if you have realized that your child is exhibiting this same behavior please try this and update me on your child's progress!

The sign for "tired" is...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-AZCZlPECE

Here is the sign for "sleep"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUyXhxeunF4




Use the sign that you think will be easiest for your child, I think i am going to try the sing for "Tired" myself.

Again I will keep you updated on her progress and please keep me updated on yours!  Also comment If you have any questions at all:-)

Happy Fathers Day!

Happy Fathers Day to All You Fathers and Men who act like Fathers out there!!  You do an Amazing thing for the children you love! All children need a Father figure in their life whether it be their actual Dad or an Uncle, cousin, God-father, friend.....

I am lucky enough to have an Amazing husband and father to my beautiful daughter and would like to share some pictures of his First Fathers day!!

He spent most of his day actually watching ME in a play at the local community theater, so much for the day being all about him:-)  He is such a sport about it and said that his day was perfect anyways:-)

My parents were in town to see my show and we got to spend the whole weekend with family which is always nice since none of them live close!

Layla only got one nap since they spent a good part of the day watching my show so we put her to bed super early...the reason for the Pj's in broad daylight:-)







Although i know James would have loved relaxing and reading his book tonight, instead he took the time to bathe Layla, make her a bottle, read her multiple books and lay her down and was even the first one to get up and go running when she woke up crying.

I am bragging on my husband because i feel truly blessed and know that not all fathers are as dedicated and loving as he is:-)

Tell the fathers or father figures in your life how special they are to you, I know mine are to me!

Daddy Month

Why A Daughter Needs a Dad:
To teach her to believe That she deserves to be treated well.

Why a Son needs a Father:
To teach him to weigh the consequences of his actions and make decisions accordingly.

Singing To Baby

We have talked about reading with your baby and signing with your baby now lets talk about the importance and the FUN of singing with/to your baby!

First of all when I say your "baby" I mean YOUR baby, which could mean your five year old but you know your baby is ALWAYS going to be your baby.

Alright enough with the word baby...lets talk about singing! La La La!!!!!

You may think you have an awful singing voice and honestly you may, but that doesn't mean that your child doesn't want to hear you singing to them!  Singing with your child can help them learn some very important things, like body parts and sounds, but what I bet you didn't know is that singing to your baby can seriously help their language skills.  A lot of the children that I have personally come across throughout my many years as a preschool teacher, used their first words while singing a song!

My baby, Layla, says the word "baby" all the time and I truly believe it is because daily, and sometimes hourly I sing her the song....

Layla, Layla BABY
Layla, Layla BABY
Laaaaayla, Layla BAAAAABY!
(TUNE ON SHERRY BABY by, The 4 Seasons)

Layla also LOVES dancing and moving to Music and I believe it is because we sing to her often.  Singing to your children can help with coordination and learning certain specific movements!


(Daniel Dwase, editor of the online Child Development Guide, agreed that nursery rhymes set to music can aid a child's development. But, he added, teaching a child to dance is also important.

"Music assists in the development of a child's speech," he said. "Singing nursery rhymes and simple songs teaches children how language is constructed and assists with the acquisition of language. Singing songs with your child will also teach them about tone, beat and rhythm.

"Even better than just singing, though, is to teach songs with actions and encourage your child to dance along to the music, they will learn balance, co-ordination, body awareness and rhythm," he said.END.http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/may/08/singing-children-development-language-skills)

Here is a list of some songs that I Love to sing with Layla and That I think will be beneficial to your child's development! 
1.The Itsy Bitsy Spider

2.The wheels on the bus. ( It's good to get a refresher!  Plus these girls are...funny.haha.)

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGT6CaDkGwQ&feature=related

3.Head Shoulders Knees and Toes.(Gotta love The Wiggles)

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFuZ6LPDYQc. 

4.You are my sunshine. (This Video also teaches you how to use ASL with this song.)
         
            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzM0oa9ZxGY)

5.ABC. ( I sign the alphabet while I sing her this).

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMQHd1UBkeI

6.Shake your sillies out.  (I LOVED Rafi when i was little!)

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZde3-0RjrM


Those are just some and there are of course many many more!  Start with some of these, you will be surprised how attentive your child will be while you are singing to them and if you add movements you will love watching them learn and soon start to move and sing with you!

How great is that! And such an easy and fun thing to do! Everybody likes to sing, don't deny it, it's just that most of us only do it in the shower!!  But now we can have an audience that will applaud and love us even if we are tone def!! Wonderful News!

I have talked about reading to your child and I think it is even more fun when you add songs and movement in there as well, it also keeps your little ones attention as well!Here is a list of some songs that I Love to sing with Layla and That I think will be beneficial to your child's development!